As newly appointed Deputy General Manager of a gastro pub running a little over a year, I set to work on reservations, walk-ins, and how we communicated with customers.
When I Arrived
The Fountain had a great, laid-back culture — staff in check shirts and jeans, everyone friendly, and a strong team with real service history and a good work ethic. But early on I overheard a booking taken over the phone: “yeah sure”, table booked, no number taken, no time limit given. That was the real issue. Without a sitting time, we either lost the table at the end of a two-hour slot rather than book it again, or we took the next booking anyway and ended up with a customer who’d overstayed and didn’t want to move — two unhappy tables, all down to a lack of communication. Even without that scenario playing out, I was seeing turnover times that were too long: tables sitting for hours, not spending, and not being maximised.
Booking System Implemented
It was 2013, and an online reservation system wasn’t yet the norm — most venues still took bookings by phone or email. Some of the more established places I’d worked in were already using online systems like ResDiary, but it wasn’t standard across the board yet. I put in a booking form and a process to go with it: answer the phone within five rings, state the venue and your name, ask how you can help. Take the guest’s name, a time checked against the booking sheet, let them know they have a two-hour window, ask about high chairs, allergies or special occasions, and take a contact number. Once every member of staff was trained on it, it worked. I also agreed a maximum number of covers with the kitchen for any given time slot, marked clearly on the sheet so no one could overbook it.
Walk-ins & Maximising Turnover
Walk-ins mattered just as much. Staff were trained to check the booking sheet and know exactly what was available, so anyone coming in off the street was welcomed properly and, where possible, accommodated, while being told clearly if their table had a time limit. Walk-ins were also a real opportunity to increase turnover: they were usually happy to take a shorter sitting if the kitchen could manage it, which freed the table up for the next booking. All the time, maximising covers and sales.
Training and Upselling
Alongside the new system, I trained the team on managing the door and bookings, and on taking the good service already there and making it great: every guest getting a seamless experience from start to finish, so they wanted to come back. That started with the first phone call, but ran through the whole visit, communication, personality, efficiency and attention, throughout. We also brought in upselling targets, which the team really got behind: recommending sides, suggesting a dessert, or simply asking if someone wanted another drink, without ever feeling pushy.
Every member of staff worked both bar and floor, with roles assigned each shift, so bar staff could take a booking or greet someone at the door if the floor was stretched. Everyone offered the same standard of service, wherever they were.
Results
The team got the results we were after: a strong base of returning customers, a healthy average spend, and a venue running full and efficient. A few months in, we’d increased weekly turnover by £10k, something I’m still proud of.
